The present invention relates to an information display apparatus for a sewing machine which comprises an information memory means for storing information on the using methods of using a sewing machine and methods of sewing plural stitch patterns in a classified fashion and a display, and can selectively display the above-mentioned information.
In the recent zigzag sewing machine with electronic control system, in addition to straight stitch and zigzag stitch, plural kinds of stitch pattern sewings such as buttonhole sewing, button sewing, triple stitch, overlock stitch, overedge stitch, stitch pattern sewing of character, mark, and the like can be performed.
It is difficult to select a desired stitch pattern from among the above-mentioned large number of patterns and a suitable amount of feed and a suitable oscilating width, and therefore display apparatuses for a zigzag sewing machine with electronic control system have been proposed in the U.S Pat. Nos. 4,236,467, 4,499,836 and 4,651,663.
In the information display apparatus of the U.S. Pat. No. 4,236,467, a plurality of amounts of adjustments (such as oscilating width and amount of feed) optimum for forming a selected stitch pattern and the kinds of suitable presser feet are displayed on a plurality of corresponding displays, and the above-mentioned amounts of adjustments and the presser feet are kept displayed by numeric values and symbols unless the selection of the stitch pattern is changed. Also, in the U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,499,836 and 4,651,663, a plurality of amounts of adjustments suitable for the selected stitch pattern or a plurality of amounts of adjustments set by the operator are displayed on a display.
The information display apparatuses for the zigzag sewing machine described in the above-mentioned Patent Publications display a minimum of information required for sewing the selected pattern, but displaying only the amounts of adjustments and the kinds of presser feet is not enough for preferable sewing, and it is desirable to give a larger amount of information to the unskilled operator.
Then, the applicant of the present invention has proposed an information display apparatus for a zigzag sewing machine wherein, as shown in the U.S. Pat. Ser. No. 07/082,597, data of optimum set values for each stitch pattern adjusted by an adjusting means and messages of either of sewing work for forming each stitch pattern and the method of forming each stitch pattern can be displayed on a 16-character display in a selective change-over manner.
This information display apparatus also is not configurated in a manner that in sewing, information on general methods of using the sewing machine such as method of setting needle thread, method of winding bobbin thread and method of attaching the side cutter is displayed.
Accordingly, for example, when setting the needle thread from the thread spool anew, the operator not skilled in the method of setting the needle thread takes out the handling manual every time, opens the page of "how to set needle thread", and sets the needle thread in sequence while reading the explanation, and thus there exists a problem of taking much time not only for the needle thread setting operation but also for other preparating works.
Furthermore, when selecting a stitch pattern requiring complicated works of buttonhole sewing, button sewing and the like, the operator necessitates the work of taking out the handling manual and opening the page whereon the required method of sewing is described also if he or she does not know how to sew (sewing machine operation), and thus there exists the problem of taking much time also when sewing the stitch pattern.